Individual Entry

Buffy the Comic Book Slayer

Above: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8, Episode 1

Back in September 2006, I mentioned that Joss Whedon was planning to continue the story of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, not with another television series, but rather with a “virtual” season in comic book form. News seemed to go pretty quiet on that front, with the only available information being that it would be comprised of six issues and be published by Dark Horse. Well, the first episode finally went on sale on March 14th, and I’m expecting to receive my copy soon. I’m a little sceptical of how successful this continuation of the saga will turn out, given that (a) Seasons 6 and 7 of the TV show were dreadful, and (b) I have it on good authority that previous Buffy comics are nothing to write home about either. Nonetheless, I’m willing to at least give the first couple of issues a shot before writing it off as a failure, and I’m expecting to receive my copy of Issue 1 soon.

Some more information has now emerged in the form of an article at Midtown Comics interviewing series editor Scott Allie, including the rather surprising revelation that there will now be at least 50 issues rather than the originally projected six. Whedon’s plans for the series seem to have grown more ambitious, and the news that the original print run of 100,000 flew of the shelves can’t have hurt either. At the moment, Whedon will apparently write Issues 1-5, 10 and 16-20, while Brian K. Vaughan will 6-9 and Drew Goddard, who was a writer on the show’s final season, will do 11-14.

Ah well, I can’t say I’m wildly optimistic about the whole affair, but we shall see.